Special recognition for one of the most disturbing entries in
the history of this contest (and I mean that in the best possible way)

Lenny Liang 2:41pm

And here are the seven finalists:

(1) Steve Forti 10:08am

The staging looked great. Very pricey, but the rented
furniture gave the house a beautiful upscale look. Lots of natural light,
manicured lawn, just blocks from downtown. This place should sell no problem.

Lucy paced a final walkthrough. Oriental rugs, plush black leather couch.
Antique cherry desk dominating the office. California king in the master,
queens in the other two bedrooms. Hardwood floors downstairs. Tasteful
paintings arranged on the walls. Hell, even the rental cat purred softly on the
window sill.

Yes, this place looked great. Now if only she could get rid of all the blood.

And the poltergeist.

(2) JD Paradise 10:17am

Maria had parental aspirations. Downtown hipster single mommy
swaddling her lovie in a strictly-ironic Queensrÿche tee. Two against the
world, no-one else admitted.

Beautiful dream, right? Beautiful fucking dream.

Reality was a hideous hairy bundle of caterwauling outrage spewing shit six
times a day. Barely stopped screaming long enough to suck her boobs flat.
Forget work. Dating. Life. Everything was Oscar.

Maria tried ignoring him. Starving him. Beating him.

One day she just walked. Dumped him in the trash. He's lived there ever since.

Scratch that.

I've lived there. Me.

And you wonder why I'm grouchy?

You fucking Muppet.

(3) French sojourn 11:18am

NASA projected the point of impact to be downtown Cairns in
Queensland, Australia. Unfortunately the asteroid flattened its trajectory and
lit up the atmosphere like aurora borealis on crack… one last beautiful sunset
for humanity.

When the asteroid broke into thousands of guided meteorites, the results were
catastrophic…all the major cities were razed. Then… they attacked...hell bent
from above.

Eve and I escaped to Red Rock One and watched, on the lone satellite feed, as
they harvested everyone, except us.

Then they left…so we’re starting over…again.

(4) Artie Beltza 1:47pm

“I don’t watch much on the tv, you know? Life’s short, know
what I mean? I go more for the PBS. You know, like the Downtown Abbey.”

“Downton,” she said, finally looking at him instead of the line for the ladies’
room or her own finger tracing the rim of her highball.

“What?”

“It’s Downton.”

“Beautiful,” he exhaled. “Fuck.”

This was going about as well as a catamite interviewing to be a queen’s
consort. He wondered if the tux place would give him some sort of partial
discount on an early return of his rental.

(5) Jared X 2:18pm

Stay behind me. Walk where I walk. Downtown is treacherous after dark. It’s also strangely beautiful with the right guide.

Say nothing.

See that calico near the hydrant? Ever seen a stray so clean? See how she
watches us, not the rats feasting in the street like kings and queens? That’s no cat. They know you’re here. Let me guess: you charged your rental car. Nobody listens. We need to get inside. I have
a loft here, upstairs. Wait outside while I scout the lobby.

Okay, this is where we part ways. Retrace our steps. I’m sure you’ll be fine.

(6) Lance 4:59pm

“Dan, I have four queens, and you’re down to your last sock.”

An argyle sock slumped around the beige, plastic ankle.

“I know, Rachael. You’re good at poker. And beautiful, too.”

“Show me your cards, and let’s take this thing downtown.”

“How do you like my new leg? It’s a rental until I make up my mind.”

“It’s great. Are those cat scratches on it?”

“Well, Bugsy likes it, but those are knife scratches.”

“Knife scratches?”

“Yeah. The side here has a neat little slot for a knife. It blends right in.”

“Can I see?”

“I thought you’d never ask.”

(7) Myra King 6:06pm

I live downtown next door to an extreme cleaner. OCD, not
commercial. Sadie Badenoch. Sadbad we called her at school but she wasn't bad.
And before the gunman came she was cat sleek beautiful.

My rental-room looks into her kitchen. Six a.m. I see her cleaning to Queen's
music. Mercury rising. Her house gleams like the stars.

Ten a.m., safe behind my impenetrable screen, I watch her prepare for outside.
Living in the real world.

Keys jangle. Her hands dart round, up and down her front door's frame. Her
ritual protection. Takes two hours before she leaves.

Wish I could.

And the winner is Myra King 6:06pm. One of the things I love about this entry is that it works on several levels. I read it at least five times and each time found something new to admire.

Ms. Janet, these have been so much fun, and I will miss doing this! I've learned a lot about word economy and thinking outside of the box from all the others out here. Thank you for the special recognition and for taking the time to do these. Enjoy your vacation!

Thank you for the amount of time you put into these flash fiction contests. I will miss looking forward to the writing puzzles, and reading the submittals. This group has taught me so much, thanks to you all.

Now chase down Reacher and enjoy your vacation.

Congrats also to TLC, always have enjoyed your submissions...conga line of black suburban's has inspired me for a while.

First, huge congrats to Terri! I have to say, I'm not surprised. Reading your entries to Janet's contests over the past few years, it's clear you're a talented writer. May many great things come to you from this award!

Congrats, Myra, and well done to the other finalists. And thanks for the special recognition, Janet. OK, I confess, it's been a goal of mine to use all 5 words consecutively, so even though I didn't win, I'm pleased. And it's icing on the cake that you made mention of it! :)

I hope you enjoy your time off. Don't leave it too long before the next contest! :)

Congratulations, Myra! What a tale. Thank you, Ms. Reid, for this great series of contests. I am honored to have been included in this talented group. Enjoy your vacation. And way to go, Terri. Knocking them out in Nashville.

Congratulations to Myra and all the finalists! Thank you for the "disturbing" recognition. I really appreciate these contests, as they've really forced me to dig deeper as a writer. I've learned so much in such a short time just by studying everyone's work.

I was curious...would it be inappropriate for me to ask for people's twitter handles. I've grown to respect the work of many of the writers on here, and would love to be able to follow them further. For example, I was looking for JD Paradise the other day and couldn't find him. I was blown away by his entry this week.

Congratulations to all the finalists and those receiving special recognition! I'm always amazed by the talent and creativity found in 100 short words. Congrats to JD Paradise, too, for making me laugh hard on my own Oscar-grouchy morning. Janet, hope you have a fantastic vacation.

Congrats Myra, your entry was thoughtful and thought-provoking. Enjoy your break Ms. Janet. Haven't had the time to participate much, but love to come back for the read and the results. JD Paradise's Sesame Street prequel so creative, blame the mother... LOL

Wow, just woke up to a lovely surprise. I honestly didn't think I would win. There were such great entries, I feel really honoured (Australian spelling). Congrats to everyone and thank you Janet for this wonderful opportunity.

Don't know how I skipped right over that first paragraph announcing Terri Lynn Coop's win for best unpublished manuscript. Awesome news! I, too, have enjoyed your 100-word stories and will look forward to reading your book in the future!

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